WO2009116574A1

WO2009116574A1 - Clamp device and transfer robot

Info

Publication number: WO2009116574A1
Application number: PCT/JP2009/055291
Authority: WO
Inventors: 創太青木; 幸治富田; 伸治遠山
Original assignee: トヨタ自動車株式会社
Priority date: 2008-03-21
Filing date: 2009-03-18
Publication date: 2009-09-24
Also published as: EP2263838A1; US20110036197A1; EP2263838A4; JP2009226525A; CN101977736B; JP4770856B2; EP2263838B1; CA2718973C; CN101977736A; CA2718973A1

Abstract

Provided are a clamp device capable of clamping objects despite positional fluctuations, and a platform car. The clamp device (10) has a linear actuator, a link (2) extending in the direction orthogonal to the direction of linear motion of the actuator, and a clamp section (3) having claws (3a) which are rotatably provided to opposite ends of the link (2) and clamp sections (8) to be clamped. The actuator moves linearly and the clamp sections (3) rotate so as to open from the inner side to the outer side to clamp the sections (8) to be clamped.

Description

Clamp device and transfer robot

The present invention relates to a clamping device and a transfer robot for transferring a conveyance object such as a carriage.

FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 are diagrams showing conventional transfer robots, which respectively show a vertical articulated type and a horizontal articulated type robot. The vertical articulated robot 200 includes a base 201 that is grounded to the floor, a support unit 202 that is attached to the base 201 via a link mechanism (not shown), and a vertical mechanism that supports the support unit 202 by a link mechanism 203. A first arm 204 that is rotatably attached, a second arm 206 that is rotatably attached to the first arm 204 by a link mechanism 205, and a second arm 206 that is vertically movable by a link mechanism 207. And a pin 209 attached to the holding portion 208. As the

link mechanisms

203, 205, and 207 rotate, the first arm 204, the second arm 206, and the holding unit 208 move in the vertical direction. In addition, the support unit 202 is rotated in the horizontal direction by a link mechanism provided between the base 201 and the support unit 202.

The horizontal articulated robot 300 includes a base 301 that is grounded to the floor, a link mechanism 302 that is attached to the base 301, a first arm 303 that is rotatably attached to the horizontal direction by the link mechanism 302, A second arm 306 attached to the first arm 303 by a link mechanism 305 so as to be rotatable in the horizontal direction, a hose 304 including an electric wire connected to the second arm 306, and a second arm 306 provided in the vertical direction. And a cylinder 307 that moves up and down. As the

link mechanisms

302 and 305 rotate, the first arm 303 and the second arm 306 move in the horizontal direction. As such a transfer robot for transferring a transfer object in the horizontal direction, a transfer robot described in Patent Document 1 is known.

By the way, in such a transfer robot, conventionally, the following methods can be considered as a clamping mechanism for transporting a heavy object.
1) A method of inserting and fixing a hand pin in a clamp hole provided in the carriage 2) A method of clamping and fixing a clamp portion (bar, etc.) provided in the carriage with a hand
Utility Model Registration No. 3115497

However, the following problems arise when the above method is adopted in a situation in which there are large variations in the manufacturing accuracy and stopping accuracy of the carriage. In the case of 1), insert the pin of the hand directly into the clamp hole of the carriage. However, since the tip of the pin is tapered so as to absorb the variation, it is necessary to increase the intrusion of a clamp hole such as a carriage in order to increase the amount of variation that can be absorbed. In addition, an error such as a stop position can be absorbed by increasing the guide taper of the clamp hole, but it is difficult to establish when the pin and the hole are large and space is limited. Alternatively, a further external positioning mechanism is required to increase the stopping accuracy.

In the case of 2), since the stroke of the clamp hand becomes large, when safety is considered, the thrust must be reduced or the cover must be attached. However, a heavy object cannot be fixed with low thrust. In addition, when the cover is attached, the hand portion becomes large and it is difficult to establish it when space is limited.

Since carts etc. coexist with the workers, they are carried on a worker or a conveyor without positioning, so the stop position accuracy at the clamp position is low. Further, if a positioning mechanism such as a conveyor is further added, a safety measure for coexisting with a person is required, and the cost becomes very high. Therefore, clamping must be performed in a state where the positional accuracy is low.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a clamping device and a carriage that can be clamped even if the variation is large.

In order to achieve the above-described object, a clamping device according to the present invention includes a linearly acting actuator, a link extending in a direction perpendicular to the linearly moving direction of the actuator, and rotatably attached to both ends of the link. And a clamp part having a claw part for clamping the part, and the actuator moves directly and the clamp part rotates to clamp the clamped part.

In the present invention, the actuator can move directly and the clamp part can clamp the clamped part from the inside so that it can be connected to a carriage or the like. With the rotation mechanism of the clamp part, it is possible to greatly absorb the truck position fluctuation before clamping and the hand part position fluctuation of the transfer side device in a small space.

The transfer robot according to the present invention includes a base, a link mechanism provided on the base, a first arm attached to the base so as to be rotatable in a horizontal direction by the link mechanism, and the first arm linked to the base. A caster attached to the lower surface of the first arm that moves about the mechanism, a holding portion provided on the upper surface of the first arm for holding the object to be conveyed, and provided at an end of the holding portion The link mechanism includes a motor, a first speed reduction mechanism that controls rotation by the motor, and a second speed reduction that is connected to the first speed reduction mechanism and controls the rotation of the first arm. The clamp device includes a linearly moving actuator, a link extending in a direction perpendicular to the linearly moving direction of the actuator, and rotatably attached to both ends of the link. Has a clamp portion having a claw portion for clamping the lamp unit, wherein the actuator is intended for clamping the clamped portion the clamp portion rotates while linear motion.

In the present invention, a caster is attached to the lower surface of the first arm to support the robot's own weight, and the arm is moved in the horizontal direction by the link mechanism to convey the object to be conveyed. A motor can be used.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a clamping device and a carriage that can be clamped even if the variation is large.

It is a figure which shows the clamp apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the mode of operation | movement of a clamp apparatus, Comprising: It is a figure which shows before a clamp. It is a figure which shows the mode of operation | movement of a clamp apparatus, Comprising: It is a figure which shows after a clamp. It is a figure which shows the robot for transfer with which the clamp apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention was attached. Similarly, it is a figure which shows the transfer robot with which the clamp apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention was attached. Similarly, it is a figure which shows the transfer robot with which the clamp apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention was attached. Similarly, it is a figure which shows the transfer robot with which the clamp apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention was attached. Similarly, it is a figure which shows the transfer robot with which the clamp apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention was attached. It is a figure which shows the conventional vertical articulated transfer robot. It is a figure which shows the conventional horizontal articulated transfer robot.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Actuator 2 Link 3 Clamp part 3a Clamp hook 4 Cover 6 Support point 7 Pin 8 Clamped part 10 Clamping device 11

Base part

12a, 12b Link part 13

End link part

15a, 15b, 15c,

15d Motor

16a, 16b, 16c, 16d Deceleration Mechanism 17

Bases

18b, 18c, 18d,

18e Deceleration mechanisms

19b, 19c,

19d Arms

20b, 20c, 20d Caster 31 Cart 32 Caster 33 Clamp bar 100 Transfer robot

Hereinafter, specific embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to a clamping device and a transfer robot for transferring a conveyance object such as a carriage.

1 and 2 are diagrams showing a clamping device according to the present embodiment. The clamp device 10 is provided at an end of a transfer robot, which will be described later, and is used for coupling with a carriage. The clamp device 10 includes a linearly moving actuator 1, a link 2 extending in a direction perpendicular to the linearly moving direction of the actuator 1, and a clamp collar 3 a that is rotatably attached to both ends of the link 2 and clamps the clamped portion 8. It has a clamp part 3 and a cover 4. The actuator 1 moves linearly and the clamp part 3 rotates to clamp the clamped part 8.

This clamp device is provided with two clamp bars (clamped parts) on a carriage or the like, for example, and the two clamp bars are held by the clamp part 3 from the inside and held. Variations in the cart position before clamping and in the hand position on the moving device side can be greatly absorbed, and the clamp bar can be easily gripped.

In addition, the actuator 1 in the present embodiment can have a low output (for example, 80 W or less). The actuator 1 is fixed to the cover 4. A link 2 is provided at the tip of the actuator 1. Further, in the clamp portion 3, the clamp collar 3 a is attached to the cover 4 so as to be rotatable about the fulcrum 6. The clamp collar 3a is connected to the pin 7 fixed to the link 2 through a long hole. The elongated hole portion that is the connection point between the link 2 and the clamp portion 3 serves as a power point, and the contact point between the clamped portion 8 and the clamp portion 3 serves as an action point.

In this embodiment, the load applied to the actuator 1 can be reduced and the thrust can be reduced by rotating the clamp lever 3a and releasing the lateral force to the link 2. Various forces such as friction between the carriage wheels and the floor surface, inertial force during acceleration, etc. try to remove the clamp during transportation. For this reason, the actuator 1 of the clamp portion requires a force corresponding to those forces.

Here, the clamping device 10 according to the present embodiment uses a mechanism of rotational operation, the linear movement end (7) is used as a power point of the rotational operation, and the clamp portion 3 is provided to be rotatable about the fulcrum 6. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the thrust of the actuator 1.

Also, if a mechanism (pin or hand) that directly clamps with direct motion is used, space constraints will occur. It is possible to clamp a cart or the like having a large position variation by positioning the clamp grip with a rotation by using a linear motion actuator with one of the clamp clamps having a taper as a rotation center.

2 and 3 are diagrams showing the operation of the clamping device, and are diagrams showing before and after clamping, respectively. From the state of FIG. 2, as shown in FIG. 3, the clamped portion 8 can be clamped by the actuator 1 moving linearly and the clamp portion 3 rotating around the fulcrum 6.

4 to 8 are diagrams showing a transfer robot to which the above-described clamping device is attached. The transfer robot 100 includes a base portion 11,

link portions

12 a and 12 b, a tip link portion 13, and a clamp device 10. The base portion 11 is fixed to the floor surface, and the carriage 31 is held by the clamp device 10 provided at the distal end link portion 13. And the trolley | bogie 31 can be transferred to a horizontal direction because the

link parts

12a and 12b and the front-end | tip link part 13 rotate in a horizontal direction, respectively.

The base unit 11 includes a motor 15a, a first reduction mechanism 16a attached to the tip of the motor 15a, which is rotated about the vertical direction by the motor 15a, and a base 17 to which the first reduction mechanism 16a is attached. The transfer robot 100 according to the present embodiment is configured to perform only two-dimensional movement, so that the load on the motor 15a can be reduced. For example, a low-power 80 W or lower output can be used.

As shown in FIG. 5, the link portion 12a includes a second speed reduction mechanism 18b connected to the first speed reduction mechanism 16a of the base portion 11, and an arm as a second arm to which the second speed reduction mechanism 18b is attached to one end of the upper surface thereof. 19b, a motor 15b, a first reduction mechanism 16b provided at the other end of the arm 19b rotated by the motor 15b, and a caster 20b attached to the lower surface of the arm 19b that supports and moves the arm 19b. And have. The first reduction mechanism and the second reduction mechanism are mechanisms that combine a reduction gear, a gear box, gears, and the like to reduce the rotation of the motor. Similarly to the first reduction mechanism 16a, the second reduction mechanism 18b also rotates in the horizontal direction about the vertical direction. The motor 15a, the first reduction mechanism 16a, and the second reduction mechanism 18b constitute a link mechanism.

The first reduction mechanism 16a of the base portion 11 is rotated by the motor 15a, whereby the second reduction mechanism 18b connected to the first reduction mechanism 16a rotates. The first speed reduction mechanism 16a and the second speed reduction mechanism 18b are configured such that their gears are fitted. As the second reduction mechanism 18b rotates, the arm 19b rotates in the horizontal direction. The link part 12b is configured similarly to the link part 12a.

The tip link portion 13 includes a second speed reduction mechanism 18d, an arm 19d as a first arm to which the second speed reduction mechanism 18d is attached to one end of the upper surface, a motor 15d, a first speed reduction mechanism 16d rotated by the motor 15d, The caster 20d is attached to the lower surface of the arm 19d and supports and moves the arm 19d. The distal end link portion 13 has a clamp device 10 connected to the first reduction mechanism 16d.

7 and 8, the clamp bar 33 attached to the carriage 31 is rotated and clamped so that the clamp portion 3 of the clamp apparatus 10 opens from the inside to the outside, whereby the carriage 31 and the clamping apparatus are 10 are connected. The carriage 31 having the wheels 32 can be simply connected to the clamping device 10 only by providing the clamp bar 33.

In this embodiment, it is possible to clamp in a space-saving manner, so by arranging a round bar on the clamped part such as a carriage, it is possible to coexist with people in the same mechanism regardless of the shape of the carriage or the shape of the conveyed product. A possible transfer robot can be realized.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The present invention can be used in a clamping device and a transfer robot for transferring a conveyance object such as a carriage.

Claims

A linear actuator,
A link extending in a direction orthogonal to the linear motion direction of the actuator;
A clamp part that is rotatably attached to both ends of the link and has a claw part that clamps the clamped part;
A clamp device that clamps the clamped portion by rotating the clamp portion while the actuator is moving linearly.
The foundation,
A link mechanism provided on the base;
A first arm attached to the base so as to be rotatable in the horizontal direction by the link mechanism;
A caster attached to the lower surface of the first arm that moves the first arm about the link mechanism;
A holding portion provided on the upper surface of the first arm for holding a conveyance object;
A clamp device provided at an end of the holding part,
The link mechanism is
A motor,
A first reduction mechanism that controls rotation by the motor;
A second reduction mechanism connected to the first reduction mechanism and controlling the rotation of the first arm;
The clamping device is
A linear actuator,
A link extending in a direction orthogonal to the linear motion direction of the actuator;
A clamp portion that is rotatably attached to both ends of the link and has a claw portion that clamps the clamped portion;
A transfer robot in which the actuator moves linearly and the clamp part rotates to clamp the clamped part.